Old Friends
by Ich bin ein Schmetterling
Summary: Ash meets Misty ten years later, in quite unusual circumstances. AAML  Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon and I earn no money from this fic. I do, however, own the plot and any original stuffs.
1. Chapter 1

**Hey (: I wrote this on the plane back from Italy. Hope you like it :)**

Ash stopped the car, frustrated. It was past midnight and he still didn't have a clue where this hotel was. He roughly ripped open the map, but found no more sense in the coloured mess of scribbles than on the previous ten attempts. He sighed, but as he looked up, he saw the silhouette of a woman standing by the wall to his right.

He lowered the window and called across to her, "Excuse me?"

The lady walked over to him and crouched by the window, her face illuminated by the dull yellow street lamp. She was pretty, he supposed, but smudged eye make-up, cheap red lipstick and obviously died blonde hair spoilt the look. She smiled a seductive, half smile at him with a cigarette dangling between her lips. Ash thought he recognised her, but couldn't remember where from. He quickly dismissed this thought however, as he didn't know anyone like _this._

"Hey good lookin', I like your hair," she said, before a look of recognition dawned in her eyes and her cigarette dropped from her mouth.

"Ash? A-Ash is that really you?" she whispered.

And then he realised, he _had_ this girl before…

"Misty?" he exclaimed, shocked.

"What are you doing here?" she demanded, coldly, averting her eyes from his stunned gaze.

"I'm lost," Ash admitted, "Trying to find my hotel. I'm staying here for the weekend; there's a Pokémon conference Professor Oak wants me to attend. But that doesn't matter, what _happened_ to you?"

"Life happened, Ash," she laughed bitterly. "We're not ten years old anymore; we can't run around chasing Pokémon for the rest of our lives."

"I don't see why not…"

"Because shit happens, okay?" Misty said, biting her lip as if fighting back a tear, "and then you have to deal with it, any way you can."

"Misty…"

"Go, Ash. Just go. You shouldn't be here," she said, turning around so he couldn't see the tears welling up in her eyes. She felt a hand on her wrist, and whispered, as that was all she could manage, "Don't touch me. I'm… dirty."

"No. Come with me, Misty. Help me find this bloody hotel, and then we can talk. I can help you."

"I can't. Time is money, and I do need to eat."

"Then I'll pay. How much do you charge for the whole night?"

**Reviews, s'il vous plait :) Should I continue or give up on this one? And also, title suggestions would be very much appreciated :P**


	2. Chapter 2

**We have a name! Old Friends. Hmm. Well, better than nothing (: Hope you like the chapter.**

Ash sat on the edge of the hotel bed, eating macadamia nuts and waiting for Misty to finish using the shower. Neither of them had spoken much in the car, apart from Misty giving directions, as small talk seemed inappropriate, and the car was hardly the right place for the conversation of such significance that would inevitably take place.

The bathroom door opened and Misty stepped out, her bleached blonde hair still dripping from the shower.

"Thanks," she said. "I haven't had a proper shower in ages…"

"Wait, do you live on the streets?" Ash exclaimed.

"I wouldn't say that exactly; I live in the hotel rooms of rich lawyers and businessmen."

Ash frowned. How had this happened to that smart, feisty girl he had know all those years ago?

Misty looked down in shame. She could see him judging her and she hated it. This wasn't what she's planned; this wasn't how her life was meant to have turned out.

"It's not my fault…" she whispered, though she knew it was.

"Misty, tell me. What happened?"

She turned away, not being able to bear looking him in the eyes, as she began her tale.

"There was this guy. Tommy. He was so nice when we met… Classic story, really," she said, kicking the leg of the bed in her frustration. "I can't believe I fell for it. But he made me feel special, you know? But not in an annoying, patronising way. I moved in with him three weeks later. So fast, but I thought… I thought I was in love. My sisters didn't approve. We argued, and eventually reached an unspoken ultimatum. It was Tommy, or them. My family and my status as gym leader, or this man I barely knew? How could I have been so _stupid_?"

She sat down on the bed next to Ash and put her head on his shoulder.

"The first week or so was okay, but then he started coming back from work late and drunk; some nights he didn't come home at all. Once I didn't see him for three days straight. Those were the best three days of our relationship. I shouted at him the first time he came back drunk. You remember the temper I used to have? I soon learnt to control it. He… hurt me enough already. The bruises left on my skin have pretty much faded now, but…"

She lifted the sleeve of her jacket and Ash was horrified to see a jagged scar stretching from her elbow to her wrist. She shuddered, and pulled it down again.

"Thank God the knife was blunt. It went on for six months like that. I was terrified to leave him, and there was no one I could turn to for help – I had already completely alienated my family and had long since lost contact with you and the others."

Ash grimaced, remembering the one letter he'd received from Misty after she'd left.

"But then one day he came home, drunk, as usual, and I was chopping up tomatoes… He spun me around and slapped me, before tugging drunkenly on my jeans…"

She couldn't hold back the tears any longer.

"I didn't think. I just wanted to push him away from me; I forgot I was holding the knife. He… He's dead, Ash. He's dead…"


	3. Chapter 3

**I used lyrics from five different songs in this, and if you can guess them, you get five awesome points for each. And there are cookies for anyone who reviews. Hope you like it (:**

As he heard the dawn chorus begin, Ash decided he couldn't feign sleep any longer. He got out of bed, intending to go for a walk and clear his head. Misty, however, was also awake, having also not been able to sleep. She shot up as soon as she heard the door open.

"Where are you going?" she demanded.

"Relax, Misty. I'm just going for a walk. Breakfast is at nine; I'll meet you downstairs then. Okay?"

She nodded reluctantly and flopped back down.

Ash headed outside. The day was sunny and warm; he could tell later it would be a scorcher.

"All smiles and sunshine; the perfect world on a perfect day," he muttered, somewhat bitterly.

He sloped off down the street, trying to make sense of his friend's revelations. Just seeing her had brought back all these feelings he used to have for her. So much had happened, and it had obviously taken its toll on her, but really she was the same person. Seasons change, but people don't. He thought about the letter she had sent all those years ago, when she had left. She hadn't mentioned it, and it probably wasn't at all relevant anymore, but he found himself pulling it out of his jacket pocket, where it had lived the past ten years. It was pretty sad that he even still had it, but it reminded him of what you lose when you don't notice what's right in front of you.

_Dear Ash,_

_ I'm sorry I had to leave. I truly am. But you're so _stupid. _Why can't you see that I love you? I guess you're simply too young. Two years seems a massive age gap now…_

_You did annoy the hell out of me sometimes, but you know I didn't mean it when I yelled? I'll never forget you. Or that one kiss. That was probably the best moment of my life, so… Thanks, I guess. But I know it meant something different to you than me. That's why I had to go._

_You're so nice Ash, a great friend. But maybe that was the problem. You couldn't hate enough to love. Is that supposed to be enough? I only wish you weren't my friend. Then maybe it wouldn't hurt so bad… It took the death of hope to leave, but I think I'll be better off without you. I wasted so much of my life following you around, and now I can finally let go and get on with my life._

_So, if you care don't ever let me know._

_Love, _

_Misty x_

Ash could remember the day he received that letter clearly. He remembered the Pidgey appearing from the clouds and dropping that fateful letter in his hands. He remembered reading it, shocked at this side of Misty he had never seen before. He remembered feeling the tears fall down his face. And he remembered doing nothing. Never writing a reply, never going to see her. Never letting her know that he loved her too. He didn't know why he didn't. Youth, maybe? Naivety? Fear? It didn't matter now. She didn't love him anymore.

* * *

There is little else more relaxing than taking a hot bubble bath, and so that is what Misty found herself doing in order to prevent herself going crazy in Ash's absence. She had already been driven crazy enough by his presence. What must he think of her now? A cheap, dirty whore. She grabbed the sponge and started scrubbing frantically at her skin. She had to get clean.

_Help me, I'm dirty, I'm dirty, I'm dirty…_

She gave up a minute later, reduced to tears, her skin red and sore where she'd been scrubbing. She thought of the letter she'd sent him when she left. She'd waited every day for the reply she'd known wasn't coming. He must've thought she was pathetic…

Even if he didn't, even if he did love her, how did she feel now? Yes, seeing him was bringing back all those feelings for him that she'd buried, but she wasn't so naïve anymore. She'd learnt from what happened with Tommy. Love is just a camouflage for what resembles rage again. She was definitely not in love.

"I won't say it," she promised herself, before picking up _Catch-22_, the novel she'd stolen from one of her more intellectual clients.

**Remember, songs and cookies ;D**


	4. Chapter 4

Misty sat at the breakfast table alone, sipping a huge mug of coffee to calm her nerves. What if he didn't come back? What if he just left her? That couldn't happen; she couldn't go back to how she was before. She needed his help, and that took a lot to admit. Misty Waterflower never needed help from anybody.

"Hey babe," a sleazy looking guy in his fifties leant across the table. His breath stank of cigarettes and alcohol, and Misty had to try hard not to recoil in disgust. "Room 702. No price is too high. Catch you later." He winked and strolled off to sit alone at another table. Misty could feel his repulsive gaze never leave her. She shuddered. If Ash didn't return, _that's_ what was waiting for her.

"Hurry up Ash, where are you?" she muttered, and right on queue, Ash walked through the door, smiling and whistling happily. She sighed in relief.

"Hi Misty," he said, sliding into the chair opposite her.

"Hey. Where have you been?"

"I told you; I just went for a walk. I've got a surprise for you after breakfast, though," he grinned.

"Can I see now?" Misty asked eagerly, but Ash just laughed.

"No, you need to eat. Come on, I want a boiled egg."

Misty reluctantly agreed and followed Ash to breakfast buffet. Looking at the food, she grimaced. She wasn't hungry; she _couldn't_ eat anything. But if she didn't, Ash would worry, and he might even find out her secret…

He was already stacking his plate with bread, ham, eggs and everything else from the buffet. What could she do? Making up her mind, she took a slice of wholemeal bread and a glass of orange juice. The acid in the juice would make throwing up easier.

"Is that all you're having?" Ash asked, looking at her concernedly. "You can't have had much food recently…"

"No, no, of course not," Misty laughed, panicking on the inside. She grabbed a couple of slices of cheese and an apple and followed him back to the table. She was getting rid of this anyway; a bit more food wouldn't hurt.

Resolvedly, she took a bite of bread and cheese. It tasted sour and foul, and her gag reflex immediately went into action, but she swallowed it down, determined she wouldn't let this _bread_ ruin her. She swung her legs furiously under the table, to try and burn off a few calories as she ate. Each bite was the same – a battle with herself that she would not lose. She couldn't let Ash find out, even if it killed her. They ate in comfortable silence, Ash sensing that, for whatever reason, Misty couldn't talk right then. After what felt like a lifetime, her plate was empty. It was the first proper meal she'd eaten in a long time, and now it had to go. All her work couldn't be spoilt now.

"Shall we go then, Mist? I need to show you your surprise," Ash said, smiling across the table at her.

"Err, sure, I just need to go to the bathroom though. I'll meet you down here in a minute?" She got up and walked quickly out of the room, not waiting for a reply. Bypassing the lift, she took the stairs two at a time up to Ash's room. She unlocked the door with the key Ash had given her, and went straight to the bathroom after picking up her handbag. Routing around, she found what she was looking for. The toothbrush.

She's been anorexic for a while now. It all started with Tommy. She'd thought at the beginning that if she was thin enough, if she was pretty enough, he could love her. He wouldn't hurt her anymore. Of course, it hadn't worked like that. After a bit though, it stopped being voluntary. The food made her feel sick just looking at it. She'd never made her self throw up, though; no one had cared enough to make sure she ate before. Now, she had no choice. She couldn't break free from this illness, and if Ash found out, he might leave. She couldn't let him leave. She bent down over the toilet and thrust the end of the toothbrush down her throat. She gagged, but nothing came out. Her eyes watered; this was harder than she'd thought. She was resolute though, so tried again. This time it went further down, and she fought the reflex to pull it back with all she had. This time it worked. The vomit burnt her throat and made her eyes water more, but it was worth it. There was none of that disgusting _fat_ in her body now. She quickly flushed the toilet to hide the evidence, and washed her toothbrush under the tap. Getting a spare out her bag, she hastily brushed her teeth to get rid of the awful taste in her mouth, and then fixed her make up. She toned down now that she didn't need to attract customers, only putting on a touch of mascara and moisturiser. Crossing her fingers that everything would go well, she headed back downstairs.

"You look beautiful, Mist," Ash said, his face going slightly pink as she entered the foyer. She smiled widely; this was the first genuine compliment she could remember getting.

"So, what's this surprise?"

He grinned. "Come outside. I've been meaning to give you this for a long time."

**Review, and you shall find out what it is :D**

**Love to everyone that has commented, favourited and alerted this fic :)**


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